F. And do you not think that, when finished, it will be still more beautiful than it now is?—Which sort of work appeared the slowest; when the sculptor knocked off great pieces of stone, or when he finished so carefully?
L. O, the last is much the slowest.
St. Certainly, for sometimes he touched the marble so very gently that the chisel hardly made an impression.
F. But which produced the best effect? You, my boys, should recollect the careful and exact manner in which the sculptor worked, when you are engaged in learning your lessons, and often think of his patience and perseverance.
When the statue was finished their father again took his two sons to see it. It was a beautiful work and highly finished. Several persons were standing near and praising it very much. Stephen and Lewis recollected that it was the same work they had seen, and expressed their astonishment to find it so beautiful.
Their father stopped as long as they wished, and was pleased with the attention they paid. When they returned home, he called Lewis into his study, and said to him, “You saw how the sculptor began and continued his work, and you have to-day seen the beautiful statue that he has at length formed. He is a very clever man; but this is not all, he is, besides, a very diligent and persevering man: he pursued his work, stroke by stroke, day after day, and month after month, till he had completed it. You learn very quickly; but take care, my dear boy, or this will prove a snare to you by making you idle and careless. You cannot be truly wise without being diligent, and the more talent you possess, the more you should improve it. One blow of the chisel does not make a statue, neither does a little cleverness and quickness make a truly wise man. Think of these two maxims, and then you will not be vain and idle: first, That God has given you every talent you possess, and he requires you to improve it to the utmost, and will call you to give an account of the way in which you have used it; and, secondly, That the most diligent of the people of God, when they look back on their lives, must consider themselves as ‘unprofitable servants.’ Never, then, my dear Lewis, let me hear you boast over others; but let me intreat you to remember the favourite proverb of the meek and lowly Jesus: ‘Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.’”
FOOTNOTES:
[A] In most parts of the Continent wood is used for fuel.
[B] A sort of tinder used abroad.